Deadlines approaching for disaster recovery assistance

ACROSS MISSISSIPPI — The U. S. Small Business Administration reports it has approved over $1 million in Disaster Assistance Loans for residents and businesses in South Mississippi affected by the severe storms, tornadoes and flooding Feb. 10-22.

The deadline to file an SBA disaster loan application for physical damage is April 15.

“Currently 15 disaster loans have been approved in the amount of $1,123,700 for affected survivors,” said Frank Skaggs, director of SBA’s Field Operations Center East in Atlanta.

The disaster declaration covers the counties of Forrest, Greene, Jefferson Davis, Lamar, Marion, Perry and Wayne, which are eligible for both Physical and Economic Injury Loans. Small businesses and most private non-profit organizations in the following adjacent counties are eligible to apply only for SBA Economic Injury Disaster Loans — Clarke, Covington, George, Jasper, Jones, Lawrence, Pearl River, Simpson, Stone and Walthall.

Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.

Additional details on the locations of recovery centers and the loan application process can be obtained by calling the SBA Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan applications can be downloaded from www.sba.gov.  Completed applications should be returned to a recovery center or mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

The filing deadline to return applications for physical property damage is April 15. The deadline to return economic injury applications is Nov. 13.

Also, the SBA is reminding small businesses, small agricultural cooperatives, small businesses engaged in aquaculture and most private non-profit organizations of all sizes that April 15 is the filing deadline for federal economic injury disaster loans available in Bolivar, Calhoun, Coahoma, Grenada, Humphreys, Lafayette, Leflore, Panola, Quitman, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tunica, Washington  and Yalobusha counties as a result of the drought that began June 19, 2012.

Under this declaration, the SBA’s Economic Injury Disaster Loan program is available to eligible farm-related and nonfarm-related entities that suffered financial losses as a direct result of this disaster.  With the exception of aquaculture enterprises, SBA cannot provide disaster loans to agricultural producers, farmers, or ranchers.  Nurseries are eligible to apply for economic injury disaster loans for losses caused by drought conditions.

The working capital loan amount can be up to $2 million with interest rates of 4 percent for eligible small businesses and 3 percent for non-profit organizations with terms up to 30 years.

Applicants may apply online using the Electronic Loan Application (ELA) via SBA’s secure website at https://disasterloan.sba.gov/ela.

Disaster loan information and application forms may also be obtained by calling the SBA’s Customer Service Center at 800-659-2955 (800-877-8339 for the deaf and hard-of-hearing) or by sending an email to disastercustomerservice@sba.gov. Loan applications can be downloaded from the SBA’s website at www.sba.gov. Completed applications should be mailed to: U.S. Small Business Administration, Processing and Disbursement Center, 14925 Kingsport Road, Fort Worth, TX 76155.

One Response to “Deadlines approaching for disaster recovery assistance”

1. Disaster Recovery » Deadlines approaching for disaster recovery assistance – Mississippi Business Journal (blog) Says:
   March 19th, 2013 at 8:12 pm

   [...] Deadlines approaching for disaster recovery assistanceMississippi Business Journal (blog)ACROSS MISSISSIPPI — The U. S. Small Business Administration reports it has approved over $1 million in Disaster Assistance Loans for residents and businesses in South Mississippi affected by the severe storms, tornadoes and flooding Feb. 10-22. [...]